Women's Health Guide Receives Industry Praise

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ - “Despite the common perception that medicine is becoming specialty driven, there are many reasons for primary care providers to offer women’s health procedures in an office setting.” So begins a new physicians’ manual entitled Primary Care Procedures in Women’s Health, a publication that has received commendation in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association. The manual, which was released earlier this year, is co-edited by Cathryn B. Heath, MD, clinical associate professor of family medicine and community health at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and Sandra M. Sulik, MD, MS, associate professor of family medicine, State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical Center, Syracuse.

The review in JAMA praises the procedure manual for detailing common and specialized procedures in women’s health, offering counsel on providing sensitive care and serving as a resource for physicians and office staff on how to integrate the procedures appropriately in a family practice setting.

Primary Care Procedures in Women’s Health outlines 27 health procedures. Each procedure has a dedicated chapter written by a specially-trained physician that provides an in-depth framework of background information, indications, contraindications, complications, equipment needed, procedure steps, an office note, patient instructions, and a patient handout. The manual also includes information on coding and billing, as well as legal and regulatory considerations for providers. Including Dr. Heath, seven of the chapter authors are affiliated with UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

“The book is also a great reference for clinicians who may not undertake most of the more complex procedures but who wish to be familiar with them such that they know why a procedure should be performed; know when to refer; and can discuss with their patient what the procedure will entail, even if performed by someone else,” says reviewer Susan R. Davis, MBBS, PhD, FRACP, of the Women's Health Program, Department of Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. “Primary Care Procedures in Women's Health will not be quickly superseded. Rather, it should have a long and reliable shelf life for any clinician involved in women's health care in the primary setting.”

In the Preface, the editors note that there are presently no other texts specifically written for providers and staff of women’s health services. “It is our hope that this procedures text will allow the practitioner to be competent, efficient and comfortable in performing each procedure in the office on a regular basis,” they said.